University of Alaska Southeast's REU Program
Research Project Descriptions
2009 Sensor web applications in ecological monitoring of Southeast Alaska
The NASA Advanced Information Systems Technology Program of the Earth-Sun System Technology Office is sponsoring the University of Alaska Southeast SEAMONSTER project. SEAMONSTER (SouthEast Alaska MOnitoring Network for Science, Telecommunication, and Research) is a semi-autonomous, smart sensor web project designed to support collaborative environmental science and biology with near-real-time recovery of large volumes of field data. Instrumentation began deployment in April 2007 focusing around the Lemon Creek and Mendenhall watersheds in the Juneau, Alaska area. The partially glaciated Lemon Creek watershed is subject to glacial outburst flooding and is the location of spawning salmon. The potential student could be interested in sensor web implementation or its applications for environmental and biological research and monitoring. The applicant will preferably have an interest in instrumentation, field work, or sensor networks. Duties will include sensor installation (requiring hiking and some glacier travel), state of health monitoring, data management, and data analysis. More information regarding the SEAMONSTER project can be found at http://uas.alaska.edu/envs/seamonster/. Interested applicants may contact Matt Heavner (matt.heavner@uas.alaska.edu)
2009 Physiological ecology of the Red King Crab
My general research is concerned with the hormonal regulation of growth and reproduction in commercially important crab species. I use biochemical assays (ELISA) to measure circulating molting hormones in the hemolymph of crabs to assess molting or reproductive physiology. I am interested on the regulation of growth by environmental factors and how external factors can disrupt normal physiology. This particular project relates to the effect of tagging on the growth of red king crab (RKC), Paralithodes camtchaticus. Specifically we will study early benthic stages of RKC and determine the feasibility of tagging small crabs using a visible injectable elastomer tag. We will monitor tag retention and survival over the course of a molt cycle. We will also take regular hemolymph samples to measure circulating molting hormones in tagged and non-tagged crabs. Crabs will need be collected from the intertidal and subtidal regions of southeast Alaska. SCUBA diving is a desirable skill but not required for the successful applicant.
2009 Color variation and substrate matching in Coastrange Sculpins
Principal Investigators: Dr. Carolyn Bergstrom and Dr David Tallmon
Animal coloration serves many adaptive functions including predator avoidance, temperature regulation, and advertising fitness to potential mates and competitors. The background color of the habitat is crucially important to the efficiency of these adaptive functions. Climate change can affect the background color of existing habitats, or create new habitats that differs in color from older habitats. Coastrange sculpin, a coastal stream fish in southeast Alaska, can adjust its color as a result of phenotypic plasticity, and colonizes new streams formed from accelerating glacial recession. Stream substrate color varies significantly among streams and newly derived streams are lighter in color than older streams. We study the adaptive function of color variation and color plasticity in coastrange sculpin and how their plasticity allows for successful colonization of newly deglaciated stream habitats. REU projects will involve studying the ability of predators to detect coastrange sculpin on substrates of different color, and whether sculpin color plasticity increases detection avoidance. Projects will involve laboratory behavioral experiments with sculpin and sculpin predators, photographic quantification of sculpin color, and/or occasional field work including fish collection and mark-recapture. Good organizational skills, willingness to work outside in inclement weather, and attention to detail are important.
2009 Detecting Pregnancy from Blubber Samples of Living Humpback Whales
Principal Investigators: Beth Mathews, M.S. and Dr. Sherry Tamone
Unbiased estimates of the reproductive status of females are essential for accurate estimates of a population’s potential growth rate. Pregnancy rates for baleen whale populations have been estimated from dead animals, primarily from whales taken during commercial whaling and strandings. In addition, calving intervals can be determined from longterm studies of photographically identified whales by documenting years in which females have and do not have a calf. These opportunistic samples, however, do not represent a random sample. For example, larger (i.e., older) whales were targeted by commercial whalers, and pregnancy estimates based on whales observed with a live calf cannot account for early miscarriages and only rarely would detect calf mortalities. Past studies used radioimmunossays to demonstrate that blubber samples collected from carcasses of pregnant minke whales contained close to 60 times more of the steroid hormone progesterone compared to carcasses of males and non-pregnant females. Subsequently, researchers have developed non-lethal methods that can determine pregnancy rates by measuring progesterone in blubber samples collected from wild delphinids using biopsy samples. For this project we will use an enzyme-linked immunoassay to measure the concentrations of progesterone in blubber samples previously collected as biopsies from free-ranging humpback whales. Applicants interested in this REU student project should have a strong chemistry background, be organized, and possess excellent laboratory skills.
2009 Impact of Glacier Recession on Stream Biogeochemistry
Glacier thinning rates along the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) are commonly as high as 6-8 m yr-1. This rapid glacial recession has important implications for coastal watershed hydrology and biogeochemistry because the loss of glacier ice decreases hydrologic storage and dramatically alters catchment landcover by exposing new land to the process of primary succession. The ecological development of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems following deglaciation has been explored extensively, however there has been very little research on how linked hydrological and biogeochemical processes in streams will change as watershed glacier coverage decreases. The goal of this project is to complete a comprehensive study comparing the speciation, fate and transport of streamwater nutrients and DOM within paired glacial and non-glacial watersheds. The co-located watersheds we will compare represent distinct endmembers along the spectrum from glacial-dominated to non-glacial coastal watersheds. Weekly and storm sampling combined with continuous discharge will provide the first detailed and complete comparison of nutrient and DOM yields between glacial and non-glacial watersheds. Continuous measurements of discharge, oxygen, temperature and turbidity will be used to quantify the effects of glacial meltwater on hydrologic and physical parameters. We will use experimental approaches (laboratory and field-scale) combined with longitudinal surveys and stream tracers to elucidate the fate of nutrients and DOM during downstream transport. The project will involve hiking and travel on and around glaciers. Some background in chemistry and/or hydrology is preferable.
2009 Boreal Toad Population Dynamics, Landscape Genetics, and Fungal Pathogens
Principal Investigators: Dr. Jennifer Moore, Dr. David Tallmon and Dr. Sanjay Pyare
Southeast Alaska is home to massive glaciers, fjords, islands, and mountains. We are interested in understanding local and regional landscape feature impacts on the population dynamics and evolution of boreal toads in Southeast Alaska. This summer we plan to survey and sample several islands, basins, and drainages to determine the ecological and landscape factors that affect the abundance and distribution of boreal toads and their chytrid fungal pathogen. In addition, we are using genetic markers and GIS to identify landscape features that promote or reduce migration (gene flow) among existing populations and colonization of new habitats. This project will require intensive fieldwork and labwork, and will require strong organizational skills as well as physical stamina. Some background in genetics and or GIS is desirable, but not necessary. Interested applicants may contact Dr. Jennifer Moore.
2009 Levels of Organic and Heavy Metal Pollutants in Southeast Alaska Sediments and Biota.
Study of the natural environment from a chemical viewpoint offers fascinating research topics ranging from basic research on poorly understood natural processes to applied research investigating the effects of human activities on various ecosystems and remediation efforts. The pristine system of forests and waterways proximate to the University of Alaska Southeast are ideal natural laboratories for these types of studies.
My research centers on the transport, deposition and attenuation of heavy metal and organic pollutants in high latitude environments. Heavy metal studies in my lab include characterization of the lead and copper species associated with high organic carbon soils under anaerobic conditions. Lead and copper are both common features of the Southeast Alaska topography and identifying the specific form of these metals under various redox environments provides valuable insight into their transport properties. Organic pollutants, on the other hand, are typically associated with industrialized areas and as such have limited local sources at higher latitudes. Atmospheric transport and to some extent urbanization however, have provided for detectable levels of numerous synthetic organic chemicals in the arctic hydrosphere, lithosphere and biosphere. Studies aimed at quantifying levels of synthetic flame retardants (PBDEs) and their attenuation products in the Southeast Alaska environment are pursued in my laboratory. Recent results have shown both local and removed sources contribute to a significant load of the persistent organic pollutants. Further efforts will focus on relationships between the sources identified thus far and determining the ultimate threat posed to fisheries stocks. Both heavy metal and organic pollutant studies involve the use of state of the art analytical instrumentation including atomic absorption spectrometry and mass spectrometry.
In addition to contaminant studies, I conduct ongoing research into the habitat remediation and restoration potential of created wetlands. Collaborative efforts with the National Marine Fisheries Service and the U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife have led to the development and continued study of two created wetlands in the Mendenhall valley. Results from this project have shown these landscape features serve as moderators of groundwater intrusion and stormwater runoff and significantly improve affected habitat.
Effects of estuarine habitat variability on expression of life history characteristics of smolting cohosalmon in south-central Alaska
Principal Investigators: Dr. Nicola Hillgruber and Tammy Hoem, M.S.
This project focuses on the influence of estuarine habitats on the development of life history characteristics in smolting coho salmon in Kachemak Bay, Alaska. Diversity in life history characteristics, such as smolt size and timing of outmigration, may increase the long-term resilience and thus viability of coho salmon populations under scenarios of environmental change and commercial harvest. Researchers will work collaboratively with state and federal agencies to capture salmon smolts as they move through estuary habitats on their way to the ocean. Data will be collected for size, condition, and age for emigrating salmon and evaluated against physical habitat conditions measured across temporal and spatial scales. The successful REU applicant will preferably have an interest in fisheries, field work, and/or GIS data collection and analysis. Duties include overnight sampling trips, camping for multiple nights during sampling periods, hiking, boating, setting nets, handling fish, using GIS and habitat measurement equipment, and entering and recording data. Four possible student projects are available for internships: (1) developing GIS layers that show the habitat gradients across the study site, (2) description of community composition, (3) environmental gradients, or (4) single species characteristics along a spatial or temporal gradient.
Alpine biogeography and ecosystems in de-glaciating landscapes of Southeast Alaska
The alpine ecosystem is among the most remarkable of all environments and these high-elevation systems are harbingers of global change, but they are also the least understood. Even in Southeast Alaska, where you can access this environment inside of a few hours, we know next to nothing about which species occur there, how these systems function, and what changes there say about regional and global conditions. You will be involved in studies that collectively focus on how the alpine ecosystem, and the distribution of associated species in this ecosystem, change as a result of glacial recession and global phenomena. In the field, you'll collect data in long-term monitoring plots to characterize ecological communities, "ground-truth" data collected by remote sensing satellites, and conduct surveys of key flagship species (e.g. mountain goats) and ecosystem indicators. You'll also be immersed in the use of technology like Global Positioning System (GPS ), field-based mapping technology, and GIS analysis. You will also be exposed to working with partners from natural resource agencies and assist with a 1-week long, alpine ecosystem field course this summer. Students involved in this project should have a prior track record of being self-directed on projects, have back-country skills, and be up to the challenge of doing scientific research in austere but beautiful backcountry environments. If you meet these criteria, and you are interested in mixing modern technology with quintessential crawling-around-on-your-hands-and-knees type of field work, as well as have future interests in ecosystem science, biogeography / landscape ecology, or GIS, this is good project for you to consider.
